Title: The Incredible Winston Browne
Author: Sean Dietrich. Sean of the South
Pages: 352
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Publishing Date: 2nd March 2021
Genre: General Fiction, Small Town
Format: Kindle
Rating: 5*
I loved this book so much! It tells the story of Winston Browne's last months on earth before he moves to Ethernal Glory. It's the kind of southern tale that moves slowly like a lazy river, but the flow picks up when the rains come.
Winston's a World War Two veteran, now the sheriff of Moab, Florida. He's been a Moabite his whole life, a well respected Methodist, beloved by his community, seen as a hero by the local children. He's best friends with Jimmy Abraham, who has been postponing marrying Eleanor Hughes for tens of years. They're all in their early 50s now.
The approaching death due to his cancer makes Winston look at things differently. He's not affraid to become very good and close friends with Eleanor, who finally leaves behind the confining mentality of the small town and embraces some bold fashion choices. Eleanor and Winston's friendship makes Jimmy Abraham quite jealous, indeed.
These small town people's lives are changed when a ten year old girl, Jessie, makes her appearance in Moab. She's the child of one of the women from a strict religious organisation up in Pennsylvania. Jessie ends up living with Eleanor, all the while being searched by people from the organisation. The passages about these people's search for Jessie and for Ada, her mom, are suspenseful and made my heart beat faster. It was the right amount of additional plot to make the novel wholesome.
Buz Guildford's drunken grandfather drowned, leaving him and his polio striken mother to live a small, poor people's life. Buz's mamma works long hours, while Buz left school to work to earn money. Winston Browne takes Buz under his wing after an unfortunate night when Buz and his friend P.J. tried to steal gasoline from a Pensacola gas station to sell for cash. Winston sees a lot of himself in Buz, and Buz sees in Winston the father figure he needs in his life.
Baseball plays an important role in the story. Every good Moabite is a Brooklyn Dodgers fan. In 1955 the Dodgers won the Wolrd Series, and their victory was celebrated down to Moab, Florida. Winston Browne loves himself some baseball.
The thing is that Winston Browne changed everyone's life for the best - he's the sheriff, and the town's little leage baseball coach, he's the one delivering groceries, he's the one people can count on. It's not a surprise that he dies in the end, but he left the world a better place in his wake.
The novel ends with Buz being a grown-up, now a sheriff himself, just like his hero Winston Browne, and he's now married to his teenage years sweetheart, Becky. Jessie, too, is married with one child. Eleanor and Jimmy are enjoying the tranquil years of grandparenthood for Jessie's baby boy.
This is both a heart warming novel and a heart gripping one - it leaves you wanting to be a better person. I loved it so much, and I want to read more of what Sean Dietrich has written so far.
I received a free e-book copy of the novel from the publisher via Net Galley. All thoughts expressed here are my own.
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